I am looking for any information about my great great grandfather's family. I don't have a lot of information. I have his name: Joseph Burchard Stites and that he was born in 1825 in New Jersey, we think Cape May. His father (we don't have any information) was killed (we don't know what year) in a maritime accident and was killed "presumely as sea". We know that Joseph was apprenticed (we don't know what year or for what) by his older brother by the name of John to a man based out of Philadelphia named Ayers (we don't have a first name, but interestingly enough, there were three other male Stites' who would be in the same generation as Joseph's father married Ayers girls and I was wondering if there was a connection there as well, and so maybe that's why Joseph was sent to go with Ayers) and Joseph was told that he would not be taken out of Philadelphia, but was anyway and as a result, he lost track of his family.

If anyone has any kind of information about Joseph, John, or this Ayers person, that would be most appreachiated.